HIV

1. HIV Transmission and Testing

4. Don’t Think Know HIV Campaign

5. Signs and Symptoms of HIV infection

1. HIV Transmission and Testing

KNOW YOUR STATUS
HIV is a serious, long-term chronic illness; it affects your life greatly; medically, emotionally and, indeed socially, and may lead to AIDS. There is no cure for HIV or AIDS. Safer sex practices and not sharing drug-using equipment is the best way to prevent infection. But many of us have taken risks, made mistakes or assumed we or our sex partners didn’t have HIV. Having a blood test is the only sure way to know if you have HIV.
There can be many advantages in knowing your HIV status, but it’s not a decision to be made lightly. We now believe it is time for gay and bisexual men and other men who have sex with men to consider having an HIV test. To know your status, especially if you are HIV positive, will help you to avail of early medical and emotional interventions, assist you in making appropriate life changes, thus assuring you will have a long and good quality of life, including a healthier sex life. If you are HIV negative, it can be a way to confirm your safer sex practises, or help you to plan for a safer and healthier sex life.

What is HIV?
HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. When HIV enters the bloodstream it begins to attack the immune system. Your body then produces antibodies to fight off infection. Although these antibodies cannot destroy HIV, their presence is used to confirm HIV infection. HIV tests look for antibodies not for the virus itself.
Over time, if left untreated, HIV greatly affects your health. Your immune system becomes so damaged that it can no longer fight off infections and cancers that don’t usually cause problems. AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) is the term used to describe these unusual symptoms or cancers in HIV positive people. HIV is not AIDS

How does someone get infected with HIV?
HIV is transmitted in blood, semen, vaginal fluids or breast milk. In Ireland, having unprotected sex or sharing needles with an infected person are the two most common ways, in which people get HIV. If you have never shared needles, then this leaves sex as the main way of becoming infected. Having other sexually transmitted infections (STI’s) such as syphilis or gonorrhoea can greatly increase the chances of becoming infected with HIV.

What is an HIV test?
Usually this involves taking a small amount of blood from your arm. The test looks for antibodies to HIV in your blood. Antibodies are produced when your body detects an infection, like a virus. However, it can take up to three months for your body to produce enough HIV antibodies to give a positive test result. We recommend you attend an STI/GUM clinic for a HIV test.

You might want to test if:

You had sex without a condom
You took cum in your mouth
You had difficulties with a condom during sex (it tore or slipped off)
You engaged in any form of sexual activity that involved drawing blood
You shared sex toys
You received blood or blood products before 1986
You have shared needles
You tested a long time ago
You are in a relationship and you and your partner want to stop using condoms
You want to father a child or donate sperm
You just want to be sure

Where can I test?
Testing takes place at (STI/GUM) clinics throughout Ireland or at outreach clinics at t saunas. We advise attending a STI/GUM clinic as you can avail of other sexual health screenings while there. At some clinics pre- and post-test counselling is available. Testing is free at all clinics, and it usually takes two weeks before you can collect your results. The Rainbow Project are also running a free rapid HIV testing service for more information on HIV and Testing visit our webpage
www.rainbow-project.org

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2. Hepatitis A and B

Hepatitis is a virus that affects the liver and can make you seriously ill. You can also have it and not have any symptoms.
A blood test is the only way to find out that you have it.
There is a free vaccination available to help prevent you getting Hepatitis A and B

What is Hepatitis A?
Hepatitis A is a virus that attacks the liver. It is transmitted through oral contact with faeces. Activities that involve oral and anal contact such as rimming carry a risk.

What is Hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B is caused by a virus that attacks the liver. The virus is found in the blood and semen of infected men and is spread in the same manner as HIV (the virus has to enter the blood stream) this can happen through unprotected anal, oral and vaginal sex. Hepatitis B is a 100 times more infectious than HIV.

The best way to prevent getting Hepatitis A and B is to get a free blood test and vaccination.
The Hepatitis A and B vaccine is given in three injections which must be completed followed by a blood test.

4 STEPS TO IMMUNITY!

1ST Have a blood test and get the first injection
2ND Get the second injection one month after step 1
3RD Get the third injection five months after step 2
4TH Get a blood test, two months after step 3, to check your level of immunity

Hepatitis A and B can be prevented by safer sex practices; use condoms for anal, vaginal and oral sex and a dental dam for rimming.
If you are not going to use protection for oral sex, this can be made less risky by; not allowing someone to cum in your mouth, not performing oral sex on someone who has cuts/sores on their penis and not performing oral sex when you have cuts/ sores/ ulcers in your mouth.
Hepatitis A and B can also be prevented by not sharing sex toys, toothbrushes, ear rings, needles or blades.
By making sure that body piercing or tattoo equipment is sterilised.
The best way to prevent Hepatitis A and B is to get a free vaccination.
Vaccinations are offered at all Rainbow Project Testing Clinic and at The Gay and Bi Sexual Men’s Clinic at the Royal Hospital GUM Clinic Thursday 5-7pm and other GUM clinics located in Northern Ireland
For further information view our webpage
www.rainbow-project.org

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3. Rapid Testing

The Rainbow Project provides Rapid HIV Testing on Monday and Wednesday mornings by appointment only. Testing is carried out at The Rainbow Project’s office at the LGBT Centre 9-13 Waring Street BT1 2DX.
This testing service will give gay and bisexual men and other men-who-have-sex-with-men the opportunity to get tested in a safe and welcoming environment.
The test itself takes 20 minutes, with results given on the day. The whole process takes 1 hour.
For further information please contact The Rainbow Project’s Sexual Health Development Officer – harry@rainbow-project.org
To book an appointment please call 028 90 31 90 30
Service User blog:
“I was worried about my HIV status and did not want to wait for results. The staff made me feel very welcome and comfortable. I received my result in 1 hour; this put my mind at ease. I would recommend this service to anyone who is concerned about their HIV status.”

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4. Don’t Think Know HIV Campaign

There are many misconceptions about HIV & AIDS. The Rainbow Project’s Don’t Think Know Campaign challenges commonly held attitudes around HIV.
This resources looks at some commonly held myths around HIV & AIDS with the view to inform, educate and create awareness among the men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM)
HIV is a growing issue amongst MSM in Ireland. In Northern Ireland, of those receiving HIV related health care, 47% acquired their infection through contact between MSM.
The slogan Don’t Think Know challenges people to know the facts around HIV and the reality around transmission.
As part of the Rainbow Projects sexual health outreach programme, we intend to raise awareness around HIV using the Don’t Think Know Campaign. Other issues addressed in this campaign will include HIV Transmission, Testing, signs and symptoms and living with HIV. All resources will be uploaded to our website and distributed to all gay venues and community groups.
For more information please visit our web site
http://www.rainbow-project.org/sh/hiv/dont-think-know

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5. Signs and Symptoms of HIV infection

A lot of people do not have any symptoms when they become infected with HIV.
If you become infected with HIV, you are likely to develop a short-lived illness called Primary HIV Infection. This is also called Sero conversion illness
Sero conversion generally takes places within a few weeks of initial infection. See our transmission page on HIV to understand how HIV can enter your body.
The symptoms of sero conversion illness are like those of flu, and usually include:

fever
aches in the joints and muscles
fatigue
headache
swollen glands, often in the groin
sore throat
nausea
diarrhoea.

If you develop these symptoms and realise that you have been at risk of HIV infection recently, it might be a good idea to think about having an HIV test. Remember also if you have put yourself at risk you may not develop any of the above symptoms. These symptoms are not a reliable way to identify sero conversion or to diagnose HIV infection. The only way to know for sure if you have HIV is to go for a test.

There are several advantages to being tested early on in the course of HIV infection:

You have much more time to get used to living with HIV before you have to start taking treatment permanently.
You can monitor your health effectively.
You are more infectious during this period, and much more likely to pass HIV on to your partners, so knowing your status can help you to avoid passing HIV on to others.

Late diagnosis is a serious problem in relation to health complications and HIV related deaths, and therefore, the earlier you are diagnosed the more likely you are to be able to manage the infection and lead a healthier life.
See the testing section of our website for more information about sexual health testing across Northern Ireland.

Window Periods
The window period is the time during which markers of infection may not be detectable.
Due to the window period, you may be advised to test three months after the initial risk.
For this reason if your most recent risk of getting HIV was within the last three months you can test straight away - but you’ll be advised to test again a few weeks later so that a recent infection isn’t missed. The testing clinic will talk this over with you in more detail.
If your last risk was over 3 months ago you’ll only need to test once.
It’s best not to delay testing. Clinics will be happy to test you at any time. HIV tests now detect infections quicker, often just a few weeks after someone gets infected.
If you've put yourself at risk within the last 72 hours you can always access PEP which can stop the infection taking hold.
It is important to remember that the antibodies can take up to twelve weeks after infection to show, so if you have knowingly put yourself at risk you would need to wait for this ‘window period’ to pass before going for a test. An earlier test may not give a correct result. If the test finds these antibodies then you are said to be HIV positive, similarly if no antibodies are found then you are HIV negative.
How to get PEP?
PEP is a course of HIV medication which you can take if you have been at risk of HIV infection. The course of HIV medication lasts about 28 days and, if taken within 72 hours of putting yourself at risk, may be able to prevent you from becoming infected with HIV. PEP stands for Post Exposure Prophylaxis – in other words it is a form of protection (against HIV) that you can take after you have taken a risk or had a condom break on you.

How to get PEP
You can get PEP at a sexual health clinic or in the Accident and Emergency department of some hospitals. At weekends sexual health clinics will not be open. You must start PEP within 72 hours of putting yourself at risk of HIV, though the sooner you start PEP the more likely it is to be effective.
Many people experience difficulty getting PEP. You are more likely to be prescribed PEP if you are determined, if the clinic believes your risk was genuine, and if you can start the treatment within 72 hours of the risk. Because HIV medication is expensive most clinics will not prescribe PEP unless they feel that there is a very real chance that infection will take place if they don’t. PEP will not be given to someone who is already HIV positive and so if you ask for PEP they will give you an HIV test. If you are HIV negative they will probably try to establish what your risk of infection is and this will depend on the likelihood of your partner being HIV positive and how risky the sex you had was. If you know that your partner was HIV positive, and he is willing to come to the clinic or hospital with you, it may be easier for you to access PEP.

PEP’s effectiveness
Research indicates that PEP can prevent infection with HIV, but it is not 100% effective. PEP is more likely to be effective when the treatment starts shortly after the risk occurred and most clinics will not put someone on a course of PEP any later than 72 hours after HIV exposure (risk). The sooner after the risk you begin PEP, the better the chance that it will work.

Potential side effects
People taking PEP are likely to experience the same kind of side effects as HIV positive people who are beginning to take HIV medication. Common side effects include diarrhoea, nausea, headaches, tiredness and vomiting. As a result of these side-effects many people fail to complete the full course of PEP. In rare cases more serious side effects, such as liver damage, can occur.

PEP and unsafe sex
PEP is not a substitute for consistent condom use. Studies suggest that most men who have taken PEP are likely to have less unsafe sex afterwards and are unlikely to seek PEP again. This is because taking PEP is not an easy option. If you take PEP you will have to cope with the same side effects that men on HIV medication suffer from, as well as the hassle of having to remember to take your meds at set times during the day. PEP will not make you immune to HIV infection. If you have unsafe sex while you are taking PEP or after you have finished a course of PEP, you may become infected with HIV.

More information
The information in this article is in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor. The Rainbow Project strongly encourages you to seek appropriate advice and information from your local GUM clinic or accident and emergency department before considering PEP treatment.